


take care

by Chaosandthecalm



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Fluff, M/M, i just wanted something cute for these losers, lance and his lotions to the rescue, short and sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-16
Updated: 2016-08-16
Packaged: 2018-08-09 03:21:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7784671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chaosandthecalm/pseuds/Chaosandthecalm
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Oh my- just come here.” Lance mumbled, pulling Keith closer by his wrist.</p><p> </p><p>Keith is beautiful but he has no idea how to take care of himself. Cue Lance coming to the rescue.</p>
            </blockquote>





	take care

Another successful mission ended with all of the Paladins collapsing the minute they stepped onto the ship, covered in dirt and space grime. Lance groaned and wiped a hand across his face, scrubbing at the dried mud. 

“This _so_ goes against my skin care regimen.” He grumbled, leaning his head back against the couch. Keith was sitting across from him, his head hanging forward, his long hair matted and damp with sweat. Lance wrinkled his nose.

“Dude, I think it’s time to take a shower.” He said, nudging Keith’s foot with his. Shiro gave him a look but he seemed too exhausted to put up much of a fight. Pidge was already asleep in the corner of the room and Hunk had no doubt disappeared to find something to eat. 

“Shut up…” Keith mumbled, his face peeking out just to glare at Lance. There was a long cut along his cheek and he sighed, wiping the blood away with his glove. Lance rolled his eyes and got to feet, his knees shaking from exertion.

“Fine, be gross forever. I for one am going to take a very long bath.” 

He left the room without looking back but not before he heard the snort from Keith. 

~~

Dinner was a quiet affair, most of them too tired to even form words. Keith was sliding his spoon through the space goo, his hair still dirty and mud still clinging to his forearms. Lance watched him, his lip curling. He had taken an hour long bath, making sure to scrub his skin until it was smooth and even. His face had been properly moisturized and his hair was conditioned to its usual shiny perfection. 

“You’re gross.” He said quietly, leaning close enough for Keith to hear. 

“Not everyone is obsessed with their own looks the way you are.” Keith snapped, not even turning to look at him. Lance huffed, going back to his entirely unappetizing meal. With a long suffering sigh, he pushed away from the table, making everyone turn to look at him hazily. 

“I’m going to bed.” He announced, leaving with a wave of his hand. 

~~

Communal bathrooms didn’t bother Lance very much. He had a fair share of experience with them in the Garrison. The only time it drove him crazy was when he woke up in the middle of the night with the intense urge to pee. He grumbled as he padded down the hall, the metal floor under his bare feet making his shiver. 

He heard the running water before he walked into the bathroom and paused. It had to be at least two in the morning. Who was up this late? He frowned and peeked around the corner. 

Keith was sitting against the wall of the showers, water pouring down over him. His head was titled forward and his wet hair was hanging in his face. Lance wondered for a second if maybe he had passed out or tripped and got hurt but before he could take a step forward Keith’s hand came up to push his hair out of his face. 

Lance felt himself relax and stepped forward slowly, trying not to scare Keith. A pair of violet eyes turned to look at him, blinking in surprise. 

“Shit, you scared me.” He mumbled, pushing off the floor and standing, his back to Lance. 

“Uh yeah, well who’s fault is that? Who showers in the middle of the night?” Lance asked, averting his eyes as Keith turned the water off and grabbed a towel. 

“Wasn’t exactly a priority.” 

Lance’s face scrunched up and he thought about how grimy they had been earlier. 

“Dude, not cool. Who even knows what we were covered in!” 

Keith just shrugged, shaking his wet hair, a towel wrapped around his waist. Lance frowned and stepped forward, his feet moving before he could stop. Keith’s eyes widened as Lance reached out and grabbed Keith arm, still damp from the water. He turned it over and ran a thumb over a red patch of skin. It was rough under his touch.

“Jesus, this is some dry patch. Doesn’t it itch?” he asked, raising his eyes to look at Keith. He realized just got close they were and took a step back quickly. Keith looked at him for a long moment before shrugging again, his arm falling out of Lance’s grasp.

“I guess?” 

Lance sighed and rolled his eyes before he moved over to the small cubby where he kept all of his things. He dug around until he found a small white tub and turned back to Keith who was watching him curiously. 

“Here.” Lance said, thrusting out the small tub. Keith was looked down at it, confused.

“Oh my- just come here.” Lance mumbled, pulling Keith closer by his wrist and turning his arm over again so the red skin was facing up. He unscrewed the lid of the tub and dipped a finger inside. The body butter was thick and smelled faintly of roses. He slowly pressed his fingers to Keith’s skin, ignoring his burning cheeks and Keith’s slight flinch. He rubbed the cream into the skin, the dryness feeling better almost immediately. He could feel Keith’s eyes on him but he ignored it. 

“You should really take care of your skin better.” He mumbled, pulling his hand away and finally looking up at Keith. Their eyes met and Keith blinked at him again. 

“Thank you.” He said quietly, reaching over and running his fingers over the spot. “Soft.” 

Lance nodded, his cheeks still flushed and turned to put the body butter away. 

“Well goodnight.” He said quickly and left, forgetting that he still had to pee.

~~

Breakfast was another subdued event, Pidge barely keeping her eyes open as she spooned food into her mouth. Hunk was the only one who was truly awake, talking away excitedly to Coran about the inhabitants of the planet they had been on the night before.

Lance kept his eyes on his food but he was still very aware of Keith sitting next to him. Finally, his subconscious won out and his eyes glanced to the side. Keith was slumped over his food, his eyes half lidded. There were dark circles under them and his lips were red and slightly chapped. Lance winced and automatically reached into his pocket, digging around until his fingers closed over a thin tube. He nudged Keith before he realized what he was doing. Violet eyes looked at him and Lance held the chap stick between them. 

“For your lips. That wind burn is gnarly.” He said simply. Keith’s eyes kept moving between him and the tube, one eyebrow raised in question. Lance grabbed Keith’s wrist with his other hand and turned his hand over until he could place the tube in it.

“Just take it. Dios mio.” He grumbled, turning back to his food. Keith sat there for another long second before mumbling out a soft thank you. Lance heard the little pop of the cap and felt himself smiling.

~~

Lance couldn’t stop thinking about how Keith’s hand had felt when he had pushed the chap stick into it earlier. The skin was rough and dry. Lance couldn’t even imagine how it must feel to wield a sword without it being extremely painful. It could be dangerous if Keith’s hand split in the middle of battle. With that in mind he grabbed the tube of hand cream he kept next to his bed and went to search for Keith. 

He found him in the training room, fighting two droids. Lance watched for a moment, slightly impressed with how well Keith fought. When the last of the droids fell into a heap on the ground he stepped further in the room, calling out Keith’s name to get his attention.

Keith looked over at him, wiping his sweaty face on the sleeve of his t-shirt. His hair was sticking to his face in wet strands and Lance bit his tongue to keep from suggesting a haircut. He would save that for another time. 

“Come here.” He said, motioning for Keith to come closer. If Keith was suspicious he didn’t show it, just put away his Bayard and walked toward Lance. 

“Give me your hands.” 

“Huh?” 

Lance just looked at him steadily, hands stretched out and waiting. Keith was staring at him, hands on his hips. Lance just smiled and wiggled his fingers expectantly. Keith let out a breath and plopped his hands into Lance’s. His gloves were still on so Lance tuned them over and slid them off. It was difficult with how sweaty Keith was and he tried not to wrinkle his nose in distaste. Finally, when he had Keith’s bare hands in his he leaned closer to inspect them. His nails were neat and cut short, probably for fighting, but the skin of his hands was dry and red. 

“Not good my man. If they split you’re going to be in for a world of hurt.” He said as he opened the hand cream and smeared some between his palms, Keith’s hands still held out between them. Lance grabbed one, spreading the cream over them, his fingers rubbing it into the skin carefully. After a few minutes he moved on to the second hand, running his fingers over each one of Keith’s.

“Why are you doing this?” Keith asked, his voice quiet. Lance glanced up and shrugged.

“Just because you’re naturally beautiful it doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t take care of yourself.” He said, focusing on Keith’s hands again. There was a sharp intake of breath in front of him and then his own words sunk in. 

“Uh…” he dropped Keith’s hand quickly and stepped back, refusing to look up. 

“That should be good for now. Alright see ya.” He said quickly, turning and walking out of the training room, ignoring Keith’s eyes on him. 

~~

Lance was lying in his bed, his pillow shoved over his face, wondering if it was possible to suffocate yourself when there was a soft knock on his door. He contemplated ignoring it but that would just prolong the inevitable. He groaned softly, dropping the pillow on the floor before making his over to the door. 

Keith was standing on the other side, his hands fidgeting around the tube of hand cream that Lance had left behind in his haste to run away.

“Uh, you left this. Earlier.” Keith said quietly, holding the tube out gingerly. 

“You can keep it.” Lance mumbled, his eyes fixed on the floor. Keith was quiet for a moment.

“Thank you…and for the chap stick too. It helped a lot.”

“Did it? I’m gl- “

“Want to see?” 

Lance blinked and looked up, his eyes wide. Keith’s cheeks were flushed and he looked nervous, his teeth worrying his bottom lip. Lance almost told him it would defeat the purpose of chap stick but the words never made it out before Keith was leaning in and kissing him softly on the mouth. Lance froze. The kiss was short and incredibly light, just enough for Lance to feel the soft give of Keith’s lips against his and then it was over. 

“Thank you again…” Keith said, so quietly that Lance almost didn’t catch it. His heart fluttered and he reached out, gripping Keith’s wrist. 

“I didn’t quite feel it…that time…” he said carefully, his voice wavering. Keith blinked, violet eyes fixed on him and then he smiled. The second kiss turned into a third and then a fourth. Soon Lance knew intimately just how soft Keith’s lips were.

~~

The bathtub was barely big enough for the both of them, Keith’s back pressed to Lance’s chest so tightly that it was almost hard to breathe. Lance ran his fingers through Keith’s hair, the wet strands soft with conditioner. 

“These split ends man - thank God I got to them in time.” he mumbled against the skin of Keith shoulder.

“Shut up Lance.”

**Author's Note:**

> Clearly I can't stop writing these two. I did angst and now fluff. Maybe smut will be next ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


End file.
